The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-06-28
STATE BOARD OF health.
An Interesting Meeting at Augusta
Gratifying Reports from Small
ToWns-What the Board Has Done.
Especial to the Press. ]

AUGUSTA, June 27.-The quarterly meet
ing of the State Board Of Health was held at
the capitol today. All the members were
present, excepting one who is in Europe and
one who was confined to his home by illness.
AT the beginning of the session despatch
was received from the health officer Of
Greenville, which is at the foot of Moose
head Lake, announcing the discovery of
case of continent small pox in the person of
an Italian The patient has been isolated
and proper precautions have been instituted;
but DR.. Young, the secretary of the Board
will start for Greenyille tomorrow with a
large supply of vaccine virus, aud will per
sonally superintend the establishment of
of the disease. The patient is probably one
of the large crew of foreign laborers en-
ployed in building the Megantic Bailroad.
The new law requiring a local board Of
health in every town in the town in the
Stat is being complied with very generally.
The people are displaying lively interest
in its enforcement. as shown by the fact that
already in all but "a of the 445 towns local
boards have been organized, and in all but
50 of these it is known that the boards have
been appointed. This result, so soon after
the creation of the law, is most gratifying,
and is beyond the expectation of the promot-
ers of the bill
The new law authorizes local boards to
adopt sanitary bylaws subject to the ap-
proval of justice of the Supreme Court
Many Of them have drawn up bylaws which
are not approved by any judge for the reason
that they contain much that is already in
corporated into the statute law. The board
will, therefore, soon issue circular con
tanning a model code of bylaws, which
after having been sanctioned by the Supreme
bench, will be distributed to the local
boards as guide to their action in this mat
ter. In very large number Of towns there
is need of few regulations, the existing law
providing so completely for the prevention
of the most frequent and dangerous of the
contagious diseases, hut in some large towns
and in all the cities, where public sewers
exist, and other conditions obtain which are
very different from thoie found in sparsely
settled districts, the necessity exists for
rules concerning plumbing, the disposal of
excreta. and similar matters.
Dr' 1ouns was appolAleu as lne ueleSale
to the National Conference Of State Boards
of Health, which holds its annual meeting
in the city of Washington next September.
The Board has recently purchased micro
scope and has fitted up a laboratory, and
win soon be prepared to make free examina-
tions of water at the request of local boards.
This is regarded as a very important and
useful work, as the health of the people de-
pends so largely upon the purity Of the water
supply
There was prolonged discussion Of the
question of establishing an official journal
of the Board, and the project was placed in
the hands of committee consisting of Drs.
Young, Horr and Gerrish, with power to
carry out such plans as seemed judcious. 1t
is believed that by means of publication
devoted exclusively to the dissemination of
sanitary information among the people, the
Board can perform most important func-
tion. The journal, if established, vii
doubtless be monthly, and the subscription
price will be SO small as to bring it within
the reach of every family in the State.